1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image recording apparatus, a method for correcting an image tilt, and a recording medium storing an image tilt correction program.
2. Description of the Related Art
In conventional technologies, image-capturing devices such as digital cameras are designed to correct tilting of the devices themselves (Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 2008-271056, for example). In such devices, images are periodically captured and displayed on a monitor as live view images before an image is captured for recording. During the image capturing for the live view display, the rotational angle of each of sequentially captured images with respect to the horizontal position (tilt angle of the main body of the device with respect to the horizontal direction) is detected, and the live view image is automatically corrected by rotating it to the horizontal position in accordance with the detected angle. Then, a center region having a predetermined size and aspect ratio is cut out of the corrected image, and the cutout image is displayed on the monitor. Technologies of correcting the image for recording by performing rotational correction and image cutout in the same manner and recording the cutout image are also known. According to such technologies, when the digital camera or the like is unintentionally tilted when capturing an image, a still image suitably keeping a horizontal position can be recorded.
As described above, the live view images that are sequentially displayed on the monitor before recording the image form a video image. The above technologies therefore can be applied not only to a still-image recording but also to a video-image recording. In other words, if frame images captured during video-image recording (capturing) are individually subjected to the rotational correction and image cutout and the cutout images are recorded as frame images, the horizontal position can be maintained for the entire image-capturing period, and easily viewable high-quality video images can be recorded.
In such a situation, however, because the horizontal position of the picture is completely fixed, the recording video image lacks realism, looking as if it is automatically captured. For this reason, the recording a video image may not come out as the user desires, depending on the image-capturing occasion. For example, for a video image captured at a party held among close friends, the user may prefer video image depicting the feel of the surroundings including the movement of the user, to pictures that are easy to view at the time of replaying. The conventional technologies, however, cannot respond to such a need in video capturing.